A 50-year-old man has been remanded in custody after he pleaded not guilty to the violent indecent assault of a 15-year-old girl working at a bar in Strait Street.

The man, Jesmond Nappa Licari, was allegedly captured on CCTV sexually harassing the girl as she leaned over near a cigarette machine that had stopped working. She was helping him to retrieve his cigarettes. The incident happened yesterday evening.

Police Inspector Daryl Borg told Magistrate Gabriella Vella CCTV footage showed the accused groping the girl and touching her intimately.

Defence lawyer Allesandro Lia that these cases had become a recurring theme since the case against priest Jesmond Gauci, who was charged two weeks ago. He said allegations were being fired from the hip for nothing and his client was categorically denying the allegations.

The accused, Dr Lia said, was a father of three, a 25-year-old daughter, a 17-year-old son and a baby, and was trying to rebuild his life.

Inspector Borg said that the crime was committed during the operative period of a suspended jail term and the witnesses still had to testify. The accused also knew the victim.

Magistrate Vella turned down a request for the accused’s name to be banned from publication.